Salman to Sunny: Everyone’s courting trouble in Bollywood

Almost all upcoming film releases — both big and small — are facing legal hassles these days.

Salman Khan was seen doing push-ups on the set of a TV show. Nawazuddin Siddiqui played the witness to his exercise. (Photo: Yogen Shah)

Guess where you’re most likely to find a new release before the big screen? In the courtroom. Be it controversies around songs or production costs, there are a host of legal hassles that upcoming films seem to be tackling. The latest is producer Sajid Nadiadwala’s John Abraham-starrer, Welcome Back. His co-producer Furqan Khan has claimed that Sajid is yet to reimburse to him the production costs amounting to nearly `48crore.

Meanwhile, filmmaker Kabir Khan’s Bajrangi Bhaijaan is tied up in a tussle surrounding the song, Bhar Do Jholi. Qawwal Amjad Sabri and a Pakistani recording company has sent a legal notice to Salman, Kabir and other stakeholders of the film, claiming that they did not acquire the right from them to use the qawwali in the film. However, singer Adnan Sami, who has sung the song, says, “So many qawwals have sung it that after a point it becomes a part of world culture. There are over 20 versions of the track!” he had said.

There was also a stay order on the release of Sunny Deol’s Mohalla Assi after objections were raised against a scene that shows an actor dressed as Lord Shiva throwing abuses. “It’s not really the first time someone has attempted abusive language,” said Ravi Kishan, the film’s lead actor. Omung Kumar’s biopic on Sarabjit Singh, who was convicted of terrorism and spying by a Pakistani court, has also been dragged to court by his sister for “negative portrayal”.

“India is a big country with so many religious groups and political parties. Someone or the other will feel that they have not been represented properly and most of them are convinced that the film will be against them. This is why they take to litigation or put unnecessary bans on these films,” says trade analyst Amul Mohan. But he says such trouble passes seldom affects a film’s success: “Once these films release, most of them are really liked and end up doing very well at the box office.”